The curse
by TheAnimeKat
Summary: When Soi sees her collapse, Yoruichi tries her best to hide her illness. Obviously Soi takes it upon herself to find out what is wrong, but can she take the pressure when she finds out. And is Yoruichi simply ill, or is it something much, much worse...
1. Spare Time

**Part 1 – Spare Time**

Soi Fong walked lazily around the outskirts of Karakura town, wondering what she should do. She had been sent with a couple of other shinigami to destroy a hollow that and been causing some problems in the real world, but as a captain it had taken her but a few minutes before the hollow was disappearing into the air.

This gave her an extra 45 minutes before she was due back in the soul society. The rest of the group had gone to search for other hollows or souls they could send to the soul society, but Soi wasn't in the mood for more work. She hadn't seen Yoruichi in over 3 weeks and she was debating whether or not go and visit her. The only problem was that she knew that bastard Kisuke would be there; she really didn't want to have to put up with him today.

Looking over the river that ran through the town she felt a small presence to her left. Noting that it wasn't harmful she turned her head slightly so she could see who was there. The soul was of a child - about 13 years in age by the looks of it. A teenage boy.

Normally she would ignore it or send it on to the soul society, but he was looking at her with a strange expression. It was odd; he looked playful, kind of cheeky and excited while wondering about something at the same time. She was automatically drawn to the boy. Silently, Soi took a cautious step towards the boy, all the while looking him straight in the eyes, daring him to do anything. But he just stood there quietly, letting her look at him. A few minutes past when the soul suddenly sighed dramatically, making Soi jump slightly.

"Jeez! Are you actually gonna say something?" Soi raised an eyebrow at the question directed at her.

She frowned. "Why? Do you want me to?"

"Well, you're the first person I've met who can see me so… yeah. Kinda." He grinned then, a playful glint in his eyes. They were tinted gold, staring directly at her. Soi's breath hitched slightly for some unknown reason before she realised she was staring at the boy. She looked away.

"Well, boy, it's my duty to send you to the soul society. Get ready." She drew her zanpakutou and held it aloft. She was just about to bring it down when the boy jumped out of her reach.

"Awwwwww, spoil-sport! Come on shorty, have some fun first." He rubbed the back of his head and winked at the captain.

Soi sighed, this boy was so familiar that it made her nervous to get too close. Wanting to get rid of this troublesome feeling she leapt over to the unsuspecting soul and grabbed his arm to stop him from running again.

His eyes widened. "Whoa. You're fast." He grinned with a cat like expression on his face. "And you're touching me."

Soi felt a blush appear on her cheeks at the way he said that. It sounded suggestive, cheeky, and a little husky. "Shut it." She quickly brought the zanpakutou down onto his head.

"Hah. You got me then." He looked at his rapidly disappearing features. "Hey, I'll see you 'round?"

"Probably not." He laughed at Soi's sharp remark before he completely disappeared.

Soi was lost for words. What should normally have taken her a couple of seconds had taken her - she looked at the sky briefly to judge the time - about 15 minutes. Annoyed, she grumbled to herself and sheathed her sword. She now only had half an hour. _Damn boy!_ She thought, as she began to walk to the one place she wanted to go.

It took 5 minutes to walk from the river to the little shop where Yoruichi stayed. She wanted to see Yoruichi, but deciding that there was no point, she settled for sitting atop the wall that rimmed the small area. She could see shadows moving around inside the shop, but only one caught her attention. Shifting her position slightly, Soi leaned to the right, getting a better view of the faint shadow. It was the only one sat down in the shop, leaning against what looked like a box. Soi wasn't in her gigai, so the heat of summer was a lot to take in her soul reaper uniform and captains cloak. Obviously Yoruichi felt the same; she saw the figure stretch and peel of what Soi assumed was a jumper before leaving the room.

Soi tried to lean further to see where she had gone, but only succeeded in almost falling of the wall. Sighing, she jumped off the ledge and walked over to the little shop, leaning against one of the more solid walls.

She was just getting comfy when she heard a voice just to her right. Talking a step closer she leaned her head against the brickwork and listened to the sound.

"…times like these when I think of you and I wonder if you ever think of me." Soi gawped. She was singing! Yoruichi was actually singing! She pressed closer and tried to take in the next part of the song. "… Everything's so wrong, and I don't belong, livin' in your precious memories… sigh" Yoruichi had stopped singing and was silent for a while. Not trusting herself to move, Soi stood stock still, concentrating on the slightest of sounds coming from the room. She heard movement, a buzzing, and then a window next to her open a crack.

Covering her mouth, Soi tried to flatten herself against the wall, fearing that Yoruichi would look out and see her there. The buzzing was getting closer. Then she saw what was making the noise. A small bee flew out of the window, circling a few times, and then landing on the window sill. Yoruichi sighed again, this time with much more sorrow in the sound. Soi remembered Yoruichi doing this back before she was her bodyguard - sitting by herself and sighing in her depression. Soi was immediately worried about her former captain. Frowning she dared to turn slightly so she could she Yoruichi without being obviously noticed. The tanned woman was as beautiful as ever, wearing a black tank top and tight jeans. She was looking at the bee, leaning on her hands and lazily following its movements. Slowly, Yoruichi reached a hand out of the window and edged it closer to the bee, getting as close as she could without touching it or scaring it off. It flew out of her reach, cautiously flying around the outstretched hand. Yoruichi frowned lightly.

"Humph. Just like my little bee," Soi took a sharp intake of breath; _she's talking about me…_ "She never lets me get too close either. Always so close, but never quite…close enough."

Soi was breathing fast, too fast. She needed to slow it down or else Yoruichi would hear her. But she was so confused. _What is she talking about? Never close enough? How close does she want me to be? Does she want me to be here? In the real world? Or is it something else? _

Yoruichi groaned quietly, and put a hand to her head. Hot. _Damn, _she thought, _I feel like crap._ She felt drowsy, confused and generally hot. Soi was knocked out of her trance when she heard the woman panting. She looked over at her and saw her leaning on the window heavily, far too heavily. Yoruichi's cheeks were flushed deep red, and there was a sheen to her skin that looked like sweat.

"nngg…Soi…bee…" She was struggling to keep her eyes open. Her vision was unfocused and moving in an odd pattern. "Not now… this can't…happen again…ngg." Soi realised what was happening just before the tanned woman collapsed. "YORUICHI-SAMA!" She leapt to the window, reaching in and grabbing her so she didn't hit her head when she fell. Leaning in further, Soi hooked her arm around Yoruichi's back and slowly let her fall to the floor.

Just as she was clambering in through the window, Kisuke burst through the door, stopping in his tracks as he saw the scene in front of him. Soi desperately pushing herself through the window and dropping to the floor, and Yoruichi sprawled out by the window, sweating and panting. "What the…"

"SHUT UP AND HELP ME YOU IMBICILE!" Soi had lifted Yoruichi slightly from the floor and was dragging her over to the futon, laying her down in a better position. Kisuke sprang into action. Running to Soi's side he helped to reposition her, moving the hair from her face and feeling her forehead. "Shit! She's burning up big style!"

"Go get a damp towel!" Soi was getting flustered, not sure what to do. She waited as Kisuke ran out the door. _How had it come on so fast? She was fine a minute ago? She was_ SINGING_ for god's sake! _Soi put her own hand to Yoruichi's head, the intense heat of the burning skin making her pull her hand back - this was no normal fever.

"Got it!" Kisuke ran to Yoruichi and placed a damp, cool towel over her forehead. Ururu came in after him with a small bowl of cold water, the liquid sploshing over the sides as she hurried to get to Kisuke's side. Only a few minutes had passed when Yoruichi stirred slightly.

"Urrgg…"

"Yoruichi-sama!" Soi leaned over her, her face full of panic and fear.

Yoruichi groaned, lifting her arms and pulling at her clothes. "get them… off…"

Soi grabbed her hand, confused. "What, no Yoruichi –" But she was cut off by Yoruichi's moan.

"Cat… I need…" _What? _Soi thought, _Oh! Shit! She wants to transform!_

"KISUKE! GET OUT!"

"What? Why?"

"JUST GET OUT!" Soi yelled. Before he was even out of the room Yoruichi had started desperately pulling at her clothes again. Soi looked down and blushed furiously. Swallowing her fear she leant over Yoruichi and used a trembling hand to grab the hem of her tank top. Lifting the woman up she yanked it over her head, throwing it to the other side of the room.

"Hurry…" Yoruichi's voice was hushed, but there was an edge to it that Soi had never heard before. _She's scared. _

Soi swiftly undid the button on Yoruichi's jeans, leaving them for her to pull off while Soi nervously reached up to her chest. Crawling around her she used both hands to undo the clasp that was keeping her bra on, letting it fall to the floor. Within seconds she saw Yoruichi twist on the futon, trying to take off her pants. Groaning, she gave up, leaving them on while she disappeared into a puff of smoke. Soi fell backwards, throwing her hands behind her to break the fall. As the smoke cleared she focused her eyes on the small black cat lying on the futon, twitching slightly. "Y-Yoruichi-sama?" Soi asked cautiously, hoping she was ok. The cat stopped moving, looking Soi in the eyes, trying to hide its discomfort. Yoruichi twitched once more, letting out a soft wail (which was strange as it was rare to see Yoruichi admit to pain or discomfort), then sighed.

"I'm fine, relax Soi Fong." She looked around at the heap of clothes scattered around the room, stopping at the half ripped pair of pants that she was almost sat on. "Hmmph, I made a bit of a mess. Soi, can you get me something to wear, I'm changing back."

"Ummm, sure?" Soi stared at Yoruichi, not moving her gaze even as she stood up and walked to the drawer, pulling out a red nightshirt and shorts. When she turned around Yoruichi was human again, sitting cross legged on the futon and yanking what was left of her pants from under her. Soi quickly looked at the floor, forcing herself to stay in control as she felt the familiar feeling of heat creeping up to her face. She tossed the clothes to Yoruichi, who caught them gratefully, shifting so she could pull them on without having to stand.

"Ahhh, that's better! YO KISUKE! YOU CAN COME IN NOW!"

Kisuke burst through then door, scowling at Yoruichi and giving Soi a confused look. "What the –". He looked at Yoruichi flopped on the bed, and back to Soi. "How is she suddenly ok now?"

Soi threw her hands in the air. "Ask her! I have absolutely no idea what the hell is going on!" They both looked to Yoruichi, who was playing with a dangling thread on the night shirt. Kisuke coughed, catching her attention.

"Huh, oh! Well, transforming into a cat burns off the fever." She grinned. "I'm fine now."

Soi and Kisuke just stood there, looking at the woman is if she where an alien.

"Do you have any idea how worried we were?" Soi shouted. "You just collapsed!"

"And I wouldn't have known if Soi hadn't yelled." Kisuke said. Yoruichi stopped moving. "What's wrong?"

"You were there?" Yoruichi looked at Soi.

_Shit, now she's going to know I was spying on her._ "Umm, yeah, I saw you collapse."

"When…?"

"Wha -?"

"When did you get there?" Yoruichi had a hard look in her eyes, defensive.

"Umm, I saw… the bee." She looked at the floor, not wanting to see how angry Yoruichi was.

"Urahara," Yoruichi said, not bothering to look at the confused man. "I'd like you to leave." When he didn't move she shot him a look of death. "Now." Kisuke didn't hesitate again, leaving without another word.

Once the door was shut behind him Yoruichi looked back to Soi. The two simply stared at each other for a number of seconds before Yoruichi stood up and walked over to her.

"What did you hear?" Her voice was quiet, but its tone betrayed the angry thoughts behind it. Soi stayed quiet, not trusting herself to look at Yoruichi, instead settling her eyes on a place just over her shoulder. Yoruichi took a step closer, leaving only inches between them. "Soi. Tell me what you heard, exactly."

"I- I didn't hear anything." Soi tried to step away but found it impossible to move.

"Soi Fong!" Yoruichi grabbed Soi's face, forcing her to look directly into her eyes. "DON'T lie to me!" Her teeth were gritted, making the words sound cold, cruel even. Soi whimpered, she was scared and confused by Yoruichi's actions, but her touch was making the young girl go crazy. Yoruichi was so close to her, so close she could feel the heat radiating from her dark skin.

"I-I'm sorry… I heard… most… of it."

"Go on." She released the pressure on Soi face, letting her gaze wander as she tried to force words from her mouth.

"You were singing… and then… the bee. You talked to the bee. You said about it being l-like m-me."

"And then?"

"Y-you started mumbling things." Soi thought. _What had she said? My name, I think she said my name. And something else… `not now`? or something. Oh! She said `can't happen again`. _"You said my name… and then something like `not now`, and `can't happen again`?" Yoruichi was silent, looking at Soi but not really seeing her. Her mind was somewhere else.

"Umm, Yoruichi-sama? What did you mean? Where you talking about the fever? Has this happened before?" Yoruichi froze.

"No."

"But then wh-"

"NO!" Yoruichi grabbed Soi's arms and pushed her against the drawer behind her. Soi flinched when she felt the draw handles dig into her back. Yoruichi was standing even closer than before, her breath was ragged and heavy – she was angry, really angry. "If I say `no`, then I mean `no`. You don't question it. Now you need to keep your mouth shut about what you heard today. If you don't then you'll regret it, you hear me?" Soi nodded once, tears forming in her eyes. "Good. Now get out. You're not supposed to be here." Yoruichi let her go, walking over to the futon and sitting on it, her back facing Soi.

Soi didn't hesitate as she threw open the door and flash stepped out of the shop, ignoring Kisuke's attempt to stop her.


	2. Research

**Authors Notes**

Hey everyone, this is TheAnimeKat.

After reading all your reviews on the last chapter i'd like to thank you all for all the kind things you've said so far. It really made me hapy to know you enjoyed it so i thought to thank you i would get down to it and write some more.

I hope you like it

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><p><strong>Part 2 – Research<strong>

Soi didn't stop running until she was back in her office. After being threatened by Yoruichi she had been too scared and confused to think about anything other than getting back to Sereretei. She felt slightly better in her office, but the familiar surroundings did nothing to stop the strange pains in her chest. Her heart was pounding out of fear and shock; she had no idea what had just happened.

Soi leant against her desk, putting a hand to her head. _What was that about? Yoruichi has never done anything like that before! _Yoruichi didn't hide things from people unless it was really important, and even then she would normally tell either her or Kisuke. The fact that neither of them knew what was going on meant this was something else entirely. Then the thought struck her.

_She's sick… _

Soi's eyes widened as she realised what the problem was. _She's been hiding it, but something is seriously wrong with her._ Yoruichi had never been ill before. Or at least Soi had never heard of her being ill.

_Again… she had said again. That means it's happened before._

Soi was panicking. If Yoruichi was ill then she wanted to help, but that would mean she would have to find out exactly what was wrong with her and how long it had been that way. That meant digging up information about Yoruichi that no-one was allowed to see.

_I need to find her documents. _There were four places that Yoruichi could have records in. Soi moved around her desk and grabbed the nearest piece of paper. Picking up a pen she began scribbling down all the places she could think of.

**Sereretei prison **

Yoruichi had betrayed the soul society and run off, which meant she had to have some documents about her in there. She was technically still a criminal after all.

**Court Guards Books**

Seeing as she had been head of the Secret Remote Squad there were definitely going to be some odd bits about her in the Remote Squad section of the Court Guards Books. (These books contain information on all the people in the court guards and what each section have been assigned to do.)

**Captain Kurotsuchi's main computer**

Kisuke used to be in control of all of twelfth squads research, and it was almost certain that he would have done a few tests on her at some point, which meant Kurotsuchi must now have that information in his main computer.

**The Captain Commanders Soul Reaper records**

The captain commander has his own set of detailed documents about every soul reaper who had been in the soul society for the past 500 years. That meant Yoruichi's main file would be there.

After finishing the list Soi put down her pen and groaned. If she was looking for Yoruichi's secret illness then she knew she would find out something about it in one of those places. Thinking hard, Soi tried to pick the most likely place to find what she wanted.

The prison probably wouldn't have information on it as it only kept records of actual crimes. The court guard books might, but there wouldn't be enough detail in there to make it worthwhile. Kurotsuchi's computer was a good idea, but to be honest she would rather ask Yoruichi herself then risk going into that place alone. She might come out a different person. Then there were the Captain Commanders Records… Soi knew she would find something in there, but she would probably get killed in the process of trying to get in, let alone staying for long enough to actually find the right record.

_Wait a second…!_ Soi leapt up from her chair, heart pounding. She grabbed the pen and scrawled down one more possibility.

**Unohana.**

Forth squad captain Unohana was sure to have something on Yoruichi, even if it wasn't what she wanted. Plus, it meant she had a reason to be looking. She could easily make up a reason for wanting to know about her friend's health. A hopeful smile playing across her face, Soi walked over to the door, using flash step to quickly get to forth squad barracks.

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><p>Yoruichi hadn't moved since Soi had left. Kisuke had kept well away, deciding that it was best to let her come to him, rather than try to talk and get his head bitten off. She felt terrible for doing what she had done, but she knew that it was the only way that she could make sure Soi would keep quiet. She didn't want Soi to know about what was wrong with her, but the girl was clever, and Yoruichi knew she would have figured something out if she was allowed to.<p>

Yoruichi laid down on the futon, feeling the still damp sheets stick to her back. The transformation may have burnt off the fever, but that didn't mean that it made her feel any better. Looking out the window where she had been not long ago Yoruichi closed her eyes, letting herself fall into the peaceful bliss of sleep.

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><p>It was late evening by the time Soi arrived at forth. She looked around, frowning at the shocked faces of the Shinigami who had seen her appear.<p>

"C-Captain Soi Fon" They bowed to the captain, attempting to hide the surprise on their faces. What would she want with anyone from forth squad, she obviously wasn't injured.

Soi gave them her classic disapproving look, grey eyes hard as she focused on one particularly scared looking man. "You!" The man's eyes widened in fear. Standing as tall as he could he tried not to stutter as he replied.

"Y-yes Captain Soi Fon?"

"Where is Unohana? I have business with her."

"Captain Unohana? I believe she's in her personal quarters ma'am."

Soi nodded, her face emotionless. She turned to leave, flicking her captains coat out of the way, but was stopped by another Shinigami. "Umm… C-captain Soi Fon?"

"What is it?" She was irritated. She had never been stopped by such a low class person before - and she didn't like it one bit.

"Well, you see…" The man shuffled and looked at the floor. "You might not want to disturb the Captain at the moment."

Soi frowned and turned to fully face the man. "Why not?"

"Umm… she's currently having some personal… time." His face was pink, but it flushed a bright red when Soi asked him to elaborate. "She's…" He cleared his throat. "She's spending some time with Vice-Captain Isane I believe."

Soi took a moment to understand exactly what he meant. She dropped her guard slightly, unable to hide the embarrassment and shock in her face. "By that I suppose you mean that they are being… intimate?"

"I think so, yes Captain Soi Fon." The man said, still looking at the floor. Soi forced herself to control her emotions. It wasn't that she was repulsed by the thought or anything; in fact it was more of the opposite. The images that came to her head had nothing to do with the way she was reacting. However, the way that they began to change so that it was her and Yoruichi in those scenes was what was really bothering her.

"Thank you for the warning." Turning on her heel Soi pushed of the ground leapt across to Unohana's quarters. Intimacy or not, she needed to talk to the woman, and she wanted to know what was going on with Yoruichi sooner rather than later. Taking in a deep breath she walked over to the door and knocked loudly. "Unohana!"

Soi waited patiently for a few minutes before the door cracked open to reveal a smiling woman with long, plated black hair. "Captain Soi Fon. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Umm, are you… busy…?"

"Hmmm? No, Isane just left if that is what you're asking."

Soi kept her next thoughts to herself, and instead fixed an emotionless expression onto her face. "I need to ask you some questions. May I?" She took a step towards the door.

Unohana politely opened the door for the short Captain, smiling at the obvious discomfort she had been hiding earlier. Soi looked around the room with interest. It was fairly plain. Cream walls, with only a few shelves hung up on them. There was a bed in the corner next to a sofa, the sheets neat and clean (not what she had been expecting after what Unohana had apparently been up to). The only other things in the room were a small, tidy desk, a chest of drawers, and a mirror.

"So, what was it you needed to speak to me about, Miss Fon?"

"I want to know if you have any records of illnesses for Yoruichi Shihoin."

"Miss Shihoin? May I ask why you want to know?"

"Well, as her friend I was just curious. I mean I have never seen her ill before and she seems to be feeling rough at the moment."

"Excuse me for prying but, when you say `rough`, what exactly do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing really. Just… a cold."

Unohana sighed. "Soi Fon, i have been in the Soul Society for a long time, I think I know when someone is lying." Soi wasn't normally one too cave in to pressure, but her worry for Yoruichi got the better of her and she quickly gave in the Unohana's gaze, collapsing on the sofa, her head in her hands.

"I don't know what's wrong with her!" Dropping her act, the panic from earlier swept over her again, reducing her to a quivering mess. Unohana looked down at the girl, shocked. She had known that Soi wasn't really the tough girl she acted like, but this wasn't what she had been expecting at all.

She sat down carefully next to Soi, thinking about her words. "What happened?" She saw Soi stiffen, obviously not wanting to remember the incident. "Soi Fon?"

"She collapsed…"

"Collapsed?"

"Yes… she was fine one minute and then she just collapsed. She was burning up! Kisuke and I tried to help but we didn't know what to do!" Soi swallowed hard, remembering the cold look in Yoruichi's eyes as she had threatened her. "She… she threatened me."

Unohana's eyes widened in surprise. "She threatened you? Why?"

"I overheard her before she collapsed. It sounded like it had happened before. She looked scared."

Unohana stopped in her tracks. _Happened before?_ She thought._ No, it can't be that._ "Captain Soi Fon. How long was Miss Shihoin out for?"

"Hmmm? Only a minute or two."

"Did she transform by any chance?" Soi looked up at this.

"Yes, why?"

"Umm." Unohana turned away from the young captain, frowning. _Should I tell her or not?_

"Unohana! If you know something then you have to tell me." When she was met with silence Soi dropped her gaze to the floor. She whispered, "please."

Unohana sighed dramatically. "My my, you certainly are different when it comes to her. Well, I've never been fond of the way Miss Shihoin keeps her problems so secretive so i may as well do something about it."

"You'll tell me whats wrong?"

"Yes. But Soi Fon," Unohana fixed her with a sharp gaze, "you might have to prepare yourself."


	3. Nightmares

**Authors Note**

Hello again! So third chapters up, but i wanted to warn you that in a few days time i have to knuckle down and do a lot of work for school. Mainly my art GCSE coursework, so you might have to wait a short while for another chapter. I will do my best though!

I should be able to make sure that the gaps between chapters are no longer than about a week, but if it _is_ a little longer please know that i haven't forgotten about the story (i could never do that) and there will be an update as soon as possible.

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><p><strong>Part 3 – Nightmares<strong>

Before telling Soi what she knew, Unohana had insisted on making tea. Soi was impatient, but she knew from many other Shinigami's experiences that Unohana didn't like to be rushed. For some reason they would always come back looking distant – like they had just met the devil. Deciding that she would rather not experience this herself, Soi chose to play it safe, trying to take her mind off of the tantalizing wait by calling for a hell butterfly.

When it arrived she recorded a message to Omaeda. "Vice-captain Omaeda. I will be out for tonight on a private errand. Please take over my duties and make sure that you deliver the letter I gave you earlier to Captain Byakuya before nightfall."

To be honest, Soi wasn't really worried about letting the buffoon know that she would be out, nor was she particularly worked up by the thought that he probably wouldn't deliver the letter to Byakuya. She was simply unable to sit still, finding more peace in pretending to worry then sitting in silence, where she could easily fall into despair.

After what felt like hours to Soi, Unohana walked out of her mini-kitchen with a small tray. Setting it down on the table she began pouring two cups of green tea, handing one to Soi once she was finished.

"So…" Soi started, looking expectantly at Unohana.

Unohana smiled weakly. "I suppose I should start from the beginning." Soi nodded. "Well, although not many people knew it, Yoruichi and I were rather good friends back when she was still a captain. We would often meet for tea just like we are doing now. I think she enjoyed the peace, and I was curious about the nature of her ability to transform into a cat. When she left with Urahara I still believed she was a good person. Unlike most Shinigami, I didn't look down on her for doing what she did. It was for that reason that I didn't report her when she tried to make contact with me." Soi almost chocked at that.

"She contacted you! What- when? How!"

"Soi calm down." Soi was still reeling. How dare Yoruichi contact Unohana but not her! "Soi!" Soi looked at Unohana and froze. She was smiling, but not in the usual way. It felt fake and cruel. This must have been what the other shinigami meant when they said she was like a devil… Obviously she didn't like to be interrupted.

Soi calmed herself enough to speak. "Continue…"

"Thank you. Anyway, Yoruichi sent me a letter asking me to come to the world of the living. It seemed important so I complied. I wished to ask her about why she had left, so I took the opportunity as a blessing, deciding not to waste it by turning her in. When I got to the world of the living I met with Yoruichi in a small cave, in the mountains on the outskirts of Karakura. At first she seemed normal, but she was in her cat form. As soon as she transformed I realised why she had contacted me. Her reiastsu was going hay-wire. Before I even got a chance to ask what was wrong she collapsed. I assume it was basically the same as it was with you today."

"You saw her collapse?"

"A few times actually. You see, it seems that the transformation to a cat and back burns off illnesses; that is why she never gets coughs or colds. But for some reason those illnesses never fully go away; they lie dormant in her system until her body physically can't take it any longer. The result of this is an intense fever."

Things were starting to make sense for Soi, but from the way Unohana was speaking she could tell that there was more to come. She nodded in understanding and waited for Unohana to continue.

"However, after witnessing the extent of her illness it seems that the resulting fever is around 10 times as bad as a normal summer fever should be, if not worse. I have never seen anything quite like it in all my time in medicine. I attempted to help by using kido - i even tried my zanpakutou's abilities - but nothing seemed to have any affect.

Miss Fon, I spent a week in the real world looking after Yoruichi, and even as a captain of forth squad I was unable to do anything to stop the fever. It gradually got to the point that I honestly thought she might die from its severity. She couldn't breathe properly, let alone speak. It was quite horrible to witness, especially from someone as strong willed as Miss Shihoin. In the end i don't really know what happened. I went out to get some supplies and when I came back i found her moaning on the floor and clawing at her throat. She was like that for less than a minute before she suddenly stopped. After that she was fine. She went straight back to the way she was."

"What? How did she…"

"I don't know. I have tried to contact her since, but she never replied."

"What do you mean?"

"As soon as she stopped screaming she left, she just said she was fine and ran off."

Soi couldn't take it all in. What she had thought was simply a fever was something much, much worse; something that could kill her. _No… Yoruichi can't…_"DAMN IT!" Soi pushed herself from her chair, knocking her tea onto the floor. She felt her face heat up, hot tears spilling down over her cheeks. "Why didn't she TELL me!" She span around, throwing her fist out to hit whatever was closest. "Why didn't she…" Soi felt her legs give way under her. Falling to the floor, she thought about all the times she had let Yoruichi help her when she was sick.

She always healed her injures. If she was hurt during training or when fighting a hollow, Yoruichi would be there to heal her wounds and help her back up onto her feet. If she got a cold, or fell ill Yoruichi would visit her as often as she could, sometimes skipping out on her duties to bring her extra food or simply to make her laugh.

_Why won't she let me help her?_

"Soi Fon." Unohana was kneeling beside her, a hand on her shaking shoulder. "Perhaps she didn't tell you because she's afraid of what could happen." Soi clamped her eyes shut.

"What?"

"I couldn't help her. Yoruichi realises what that means. I don't think even she knows what's wrong with her body." She reached around and turned Soi to face her. "I struggled to stay in my right mind when I saw her in that state. Did you think that maybe she just didn't want to put you through that pain?"

Soi sniffled quietly, fresh tears forming in the corners of her eyes. _She's trying to protect me…_

Soi tried to sort out her thoughts, but they were a mess. _I can't cope with this. What if this time she doesn't get better? What if she actually… _Blanking her mind she forced the thought out of her head. No, she really couldn't cope with this. She was too tired.

Feeling a cold shiver run down her spine, Soi forced herself to stand. Unohana put a hand under her elbow to help her steady herself but Soi just shrugged her off. "I need to think about this. Thank you for your co-operation today."

Unohana sighed, noticing the obviously forced calm tone. "Captain Soi Fon. In your state I would prefer it if you would stay here for the night."

"Thank you but I am perfectly able to get back to my quarters." Knowing full well that this was a lie, Unohana walked over to her chest of drawers, opening the bottom draw and pulling out a spare set of sheets.

"You can sleep on the sofa."

"Bu-" Unohana looked Soi in the eyes, daring her to protest any further. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>Yoruichi's dreams were filled with screaming. Sounds of pain, anger and fear piercing through her mind like knifes. Nightmares were all part of the deal with her illness. As soon as she began regularly collapsing she found she would start having restless nights, her dreams haunted by strange noises and shadows. But this time there was a girl. A girl yelling at her and screaming at her to stop.<p>

What was she doing? She must be doing something otherwise the girl wouldn't be telling her to stop. Where was she? That girl… Turning around she found the girl, curled over on the floor, shrouded by a dark mist. Black hair… "Stop it, stop it… please… STOP!" Yoruichi tried to step back but found herself locked in place. There were chains! She was chained to the floor.

That was when she saw the dagger in her hand. It was bloody. Panicking she checked every inch of herself, finding no cuts at all. Crying sounds brought her to look back at the girl. Yoruichi noticed a tinge to the floor the girl was resting on. It was red, sticky.

Yoruichi's eyes widened in shock. Her heart was pounding. Slowly the girl began to move, crawling towards her, yelling in pain at each movement. She tried to reach out to help the girl, forgetting that she was still holding the dagger. It sliced the girls arm, cutting deep into her flesh and sending her falling backwards. Yoruichi opened her mouth to speak and then stopped. The girl looked up at her, tears streaming down her face. Yoruichi just stared, open mouthed as she realised just who this girl was. "Yoruichi-sama… please… don't…"

There were slashes all over her, some light and already healing, but others fresh and bleeding. One caught her eye. It was the one losing the most blood - a deep stab to the chest. It was healing, but it looked slow, like it was still causing her a lot of pain.

"**Do you see now what you have done?"** A voice called out to Yoruichi. It came from nowhere in particular, echoing sickeningly through her ears. **"Do you see how much you hurt her?"** Yoruichi found herself staring at the girl, watching in fear as she lay panting on the floor.

"**Every time you hurt her you leave a scar."**

"No…" she whispered, backing away, only to be tripped over by the restrictions on her ankles. She felt bile rise in her throat and reached up to cover her mouth with her hand.

"**HAHAHAHA! Do you see now! This is your doing! That hole in her chest was caused by you. "**

"No. No no no no." The voice continued to laugh, the sound deafening in Yoruichi's ears.

"Yoruichi…sama…" The girl began disappearing, fading away with the mist and into the black abyss that surrounded her. _Wait!_ Yoruichi reached out to her, desperately grabbing at the mist, pulling against the chains that bound her to the floor.

"SOI!"

Yoruichi woke with a start. She was covered in sweat, and for the first time in years she felt tears rushing down her face. She had never had a dream like that before. Nightmares were normal but nothing could match up to that.

Forcing her muscles to move she pushed herself out of bed, supporting herself on the wall as she quickly made her way over to the door. Opening it, Yoruichi began rushing down the corridor, struggling to stay upright as she felt her stomach turn and her head spin. Reaching the bathroom just in time she threw herself at the sink, not bothering to shut the door as she was violently sick. She couldn't get image of the beaten Soi out of her mind; blood pouring from the wound in her chest.

The thought made her even sicker, but for some reason she didn't care. All she wanted to do was see Soi. When she finally stopped throwing up she laughed to herself.

"Yeah, like I can really just walk up to her now." She said out loud, ignoring the foul taste in her mouth. She thought back to the last time she had gotten ill with Unohana. It had been about a week after she had started passing out that she began having nightmares. Then it had taken another week, (the week Unohana was there), before the whole thing was over.

_So if it takes two weeks altogether, that means I'm half way… it's been 7 days. _She thought back once more. _It was on about the 12__th__ day that I completely went out of it._

In the last week Yoruichi had gotten worse very quickly. The nightmares had gotten to a point where, although she didn't talk about it or show it, she was too scared to fall asleep. The 12th day onwards had been the worst. Because she hadn't been sleeping her body began to go into overdrive, leaving her unable to control whether or not she was asleep or awake. That meant even the day time was filled with nightmares – and they were always worse than the one before.

_They were never like this one though. God, I don't think I can take seeing that again, especially if they get worse like last time._

Yoruichi ran some cold water into the basin, washing away the vomit and then filling it with clean water. Slowly steadying herself she splashed her face with the liquid, swallowing down a handful to wash away the taste in her mouth. She sighed.

"This is just the beginning…"


	4. Tag

**Authors Note**

Not sure if it all worked, but i've gone back and neatened up the other chaptesr a bit becuase for some reason the lines were deleted, so sorry bout that little mess up, and if it caused any problems. ^^;

Okay, forth chapters up. It's not as good as I would like but I'll make up for it by making the next chapter better.

I'm currently writing the fifth chapter and I really want to know what you guys think is gonna happen later in the story. I've planned out a lot of it, and the ending is definitely set, but I want to know how you guys think it should go, and I might try and incorporate some of your ideas in there if I really like them. So review with any ideas, even if they are only small ones. I would love to hear them anyway.

Hope you enjoy it

TheAnimeKat

* * *

><p><strong>Part 4 – Tag<strong>

Soi woke up early that morning. She was sprawled out on Unohana's sofa, the sheets tangled around her limbs, and the pillow she had used had fallen on the floor. It wasn't like her to fidget in her sleep, but last night was an exception. Soi had lain awake for hours; too tired to get up and do anything, but too upset to sleep.

Reaching up, she wiped away the sleepy dust in her eyes and pulled the sheets away from her body. Sitting up she began to smell something. Following the scent she found herself in the doorway to the kitchen. Unohana was stood at the cooker with a frying pan in her hand. "What are you doing?" Soi asked, forgetting her manners in her sleepy state.

Unohana turned to look at Soi, a smile playing at her lips as she took in the sight of the young captain. "I'm cooking breakfast Soi." Unohana, who was not accustomed to seeing the softer side of Soi, was trying to keep the mood light. She wished to learn more about this side of the captain. It was rare for anyone other than Yoruichi to see Soi as she normally should be, and Unohana was not going to waste the chance to get closer to her.

She watched closely as Soi carefully walked over to the table, pulling out a chair and collapsing into it. "What're you making?" Soi shut her eyes and waited for a response.

"Bacon and eggs; it's an English breakfast, but I'm rather partial to it myself. Here." Unohana put the bacon and egg onto a plate and put it in front of Soi.

"Don't you just have toast or something in the morning?"

Unohana laughed. "No, I really don't see how you manage to stay awake all day with the little you eat. At least it explains why you're so thin. Now eat." Soi sat up properly and began to pick at the meal in front of her. It was surprisingly good. Unohana sat down in the chair opposite Soi and watched her eat. "Soi Fon, how old are you?"

Soi looked up. "I don't keep track of my age. Why? Do you?"

"No. It is indeed rare to find a shinigami who keeps track of their age. I simply wondered. You seem... younger… then the other captains."

"I'm older then Captain Hitsugaya." Soi said stubbornly, not liking being called young.

"Yes, but you were around his current age when you became captain were you not."

"I- I think so. I'm not sure. Captain Hitsugaya looks a lot younger than he actually is." Soi paused, confused. "Why are you worried about my age?"

"I'm not particularly worried, just curious. There is a lot about you that people don't know Soi. When you first became captain I was actually against it."

Soi was shocked at the remark. "You were against my being a Captain? Why?"

"As I said, people don't know much about you. They knew even less back then. All the captains saw was a strong girl with immense fighting ability. However, I knew from the talks with Miss Shihoin that you were not always like that."

"But-" Unohana raised a hand to stop her.

"It was not that I didn't think you would make a good captain; that was most certainly not the case. I had never actually met you up until the point when you ran for captain, but somehow I knew you were not yourself. You were far too emotionally strained to take on all that responsibility."

"I don't understand."

"I could see what Yoruichi's departure had done to you." She looked Soi in the eyes. "How much pain you were in."

Soi immediately felt her defences go back up, not liking the way Unohana was talking about her past. "I don't see why that was any of your business, captain."

"I never said it was, I was simply worried you wouldn't be able to handle the pressure. I see know that I was wrong."

Soi refused to answer, knowing that anything she said now would sound snappy and mean, even if it was not meant in that way. She was still touchy about her past, especially when it involved Yoruichi, and she didn't want to get into a fight with Unohana.

Placing her chopsticks down on the table, Soi stood, calming herself enough to say a soft goodbye, thanking her for the information and food before turning to leave.

"Soi Fong," Unohana started, following the young captains' movements and stopping her just before she could leave. "I know you are upset about Yoruichi, but please be careful. Miss shihoin can be dangerous in the state she is in, and she may not be able to control her emotions very well."

Soi took a deep, slow breath, looking Unohana in the eyes before replying with a firm "I will", and walking out the door into the brisk air of the soul society.

* * *

><p>Yoruichi was sat in the main room in Urahara's shop, playing with a new invention he had come up with that supposedly let you speak to animals. Not convinced with the efficiency of the thing, Yoruichi had gone out early that morning to by a goldfish, and now sat with a bowl of water in her hands, attempting to speak with the creature.<p>

Kisuke on the other hand was finding it incredibly hard to sit still. Yoruichi had hardly spoken to him all morning, and when she did it was normally a playful remark about his stupidity or something along those lines. As a scientist he was curious by nature, and the events of the previous evening had left him far from settled. His scientist mind was working at a hundred times its normal rate, desperately trying to grab at any explanation as to why Yoruichi had gotten ill and recovered so fast, but his normal, stupid self, was far too worried about her welfare, and the reason as to why he was woken up to the sounds of vomiting in the middle of the night, to think of anything clearly.

After several painful minutes of listening to Yoruichi trying to speak goldfish Kisuke caved in, finally letting a question fall from his lips. "Soooo… how are you feeling?"

"Hmmmm…?" Yoruichi was far too preoccupied with her fish to think of a decent reply. "Yeah, I'm good."

Kisuke frowned. Not only was it weird for Yoruichi to say she was `good` without some sort of sarcastic twist, but it was almost impossible for her to be `good` after the night before. Deciding he was more likely to get a reply by being an idiot, he tried slipping back into his usual self, forgetting about his worries and hoping Yoruichi would let something slip if it looked like he didn't care.

"oh ho ho, really. That's good then. 'Cause I was thinking we could go and play a nice game of round up with the mod souls?" He stood up dramatically, putting on his best excited face and grinning from ear to ear.

Yoruichi smirked. "Now THAT sounds like fun."

Sliding the doors open Kisuke grabbed a pack of mod souls, slipping them into several un-used gigai and ordering them to `pay tag`. Sticking his tongue out at Yoruichi, he flash stepped after them, leaving her in the shop.

"Game on!"

* * *

><p>Soi Fong had never played games even as a child, so when she stepped into the world of the living she was certainly not expecting to find two full grown adults `playing tag` with a group of mod soul inhabited gigai. The jeering could be heard from a mile off, and Soi was surprised no one had noticed the two shinigami yet, with the intense racket they were making.<p>

"You're too slow Kisuke!" Yoruichi yelled as she leapt off of one of roofs in the distance, spinning in the air and pouncing on one of the mod souls as they desperately tried to avoid her grasp. "Five!" Soi watched in awe as Yoruichi twirled again, pulling the gigai into her arms and landing gracefully on the roof closest to her. The mod soul bowed politely to the darker woman, congratulating her and standing still so she could remove the small pill from the borrowed body. It took less than a second for Yoruichi to catch the now empty body, flash step back to the shop, and then get back to her game.

Just as Soi was about to go up to Yoruichi she heard an excited laugh from behind her. Turning, she noticed Urahara standing on the pavement almost immediately below her, proudly waving a pill in the air whilst holding the body of a young male in his arms. "I got four!" He bellowed, grinning as he pocketed the item, jumping onto a roof so he could prepare for a flash step. It was then that he finally noticed Soi Fong.

"Oh! Soi! You wanna join in? There's still one more left!" Soi raised an eyebrow at the man's stupidity, wondering faintly how he could be so calm after all that had happened.

"No thanks… I simply came to see Yoruichi."

"Awwww come on!" Kisuke carefully placed the body he was holding on a rooftop, re-arranging his hat as he jumped up a little higher to where Soi was standing. "It's fun."

"I said no." Soi wanted nothing more in that moment than to wipe the smirk off of Kisuke's face, but knowing it would only cause more issues she let him be, instead spinning around to search for Yoruichi. Seeing the woman happily chasing after the final gigai brought a smile to her lips, but when she realised this could be the last time she would see her so happy she felt a wash of sadness sweep over her.

Yoruichi was oblivious to Soi's appearance; she was far too busy following the mod soul. Slowing her speed down slightly to give the man a chance she let her thoughts wander to Kisuke. _Where is he?_

"Yo! Kisuke? Where are you?"

"With Soi!" Came the response, stopping her dead in her tracks. The content smile Yoruichi had previously been wearing faded as she turned around, catching sight of the skinny young woman standing atop a tv signal pole. Within a second Yoruichi felt sick, the images from the night before flashing like lighting through her mind, clear as day.

"Soi…" Yoruichi was not weak; in fact, she was probably the most strong-willed shinigami out there. However, it took all her strength to tear her eyes away from the girl, swallowing down the bile in her throat and plastering a smile on her face.

"Soi Fong!" Yoruichi played her act well, using flash step to reach Soi and playfully patting her on the shoulder.

Soi looked at Yoruichi with eyes full of sorrow, for once not getting flustered by the dark beauty's close contact. This didn't go un-noticed by Yoruichi, who quickly took in Soi's saddened expression and tense stance. Soi was using all her strength to stop herself from crying and reaching out to hold Yoruichi. She knew from the smile on her face that Yoruichi either had forgotten the way she had acted the day before (which seemed highly unlikely), or she simply didn't want to talk about it. Taking the second option as the most likely Soi pulled herself together, looking down at the waiting mod soul and nodding in its direction. "I see you still have one left then?"

Yoruichi grinned wider, taking this as a good sign. "Yup, and you're going to catch him with me."

"Wha-" Before Soi had a chance to argue Yoruichi grabbed her wrist, yanking her of the pole she was perched on and flash stepping over to where the man had been stood.

"Yoruichi!" She yelled, struggling to keep up with the woman as she sped off after the mod soul who was currently sprinting for dear life. "Please stop!" She tried to wiggle her wrist out of the woman's grasp, only succeeding in making Yoruichi hold her tighter.

"Ah, come on Soi! Have some fun!" Soi looked over at her captor, staring at her face intently. When she had determined that her smile was actually genuine, Soi loosened up a little, letting herself relax into the rush of the chase. The wind was still warm from the summer heat, but the speed at which they were running made it feel like ice – sharp and frosty.

Finally Yoruichi let her wrist go and Soi felt herself slip into a mind-blowing trance. It was just her and Yoruichi now. Just them and the mod soul. Bracing herself against the onslaught of the wind, Soi pushed herself to her limit just to keep up with her competition. They were almost touching, so close they could almost feel the heat building in each other's limbs. Yoruichi's hair whipped around her face, the hair tie she was using to keep it back loosening as strands were pulled from their confines by the wind.

Yoruichi pushed herself one bit harder, slamming her foot to the roof below her and using all the force she could muster to leap after the gigai, latching onto the hem of its shirt and ripping it down. At that moment Soi also reached out to the body in front of her, getting a hold on its shoulder and leaning forward to push him to top of the roof.

The two women pulled in separate directions, resulting in the three bodies tumbling through the air and crashing hard onto the roof. They rolled for a bit, not able to stop themselves as the momentum from the fall continued to push them further down the roof. When they finally came to a stop Yoruichi was pinned to the roof. Soi was sprawled out on top of her, the boy laying a short distance away with his shirt ripped off and in Yoruichi's hand.

Yoruichi took in the situation first, raising an eyebrow at their position. She had not been this close to Soi in a long time, and was surprised by how little she weighed. Knowing how embarrassed Soi would be when she took in their positions Yoruichi grinned and decided to make it a little more interesting. Lifting her hand she wrapped it around the small woman, effectively holding her to her chest.

Soi slowly moved her body, pushing up slightly to get a hold of her surroundings, but looked down frowning when she felt the strange heat against her chest. "Eeeep" Soi felt the blood rush to her cheeks, her heart pounding even faster than it had been when she was running at the feeling of her body pressed up against her former captains.

After a good few seconds of lying frozen, Soi scrambled her feet, almost tripping over as she desperately tried to disentangle her limbs from Yoruichi's.

By now Yoruichi was in fits of laughter, her hand covering her mouth as she let out barks of laughter, tears streaming down her face. "Oh god…" She said, wiping her eyes, "your face Soi. You should have seen it!"

"Sh-shut up!" Soi folded her arms in annoyance, face still glowering.

"You just landed on me, no need to get so embarrassed." Yoruichi sat up, leaning backward slightly as she stared at Soi contently.

"Yeah, well, whatever."

_She's just like a teenager._ Yoruichi thought as she let out another giggle. "Fine," She stood up and walked over to the mod soul who was sat patiently on the roof. "Let's go back, I'm sure Kisuke wants his faux bodies back." After getting the pill out of the gigai she slung the body over her shoulder, one hand on her hip as she turned to face Soi. "Coming?"

Soi stared at Yoruichi, _how can her health change so quickly?_ She was a little worried that over-exhaustion might cause Yoruichi to collapse again, but seeing her so happy made Soi forget her worries. "Sure."


	5. Second Attack

**Authors Note**

Sorry for the slightly late update guys, but coursework is really piling up and I don't have much time to sit and write. I hope you can stick with me though, 'cause I promise I will still continue writing no matter how long it takes.

I also wanted to thank Mr Khan for the review they posted. Although I love seeing how much people like my work, it's also nice to hear how people would have changed it, and I after looking back at the Unohana dialogue (which was the part in question) I can agree with what they are saying.

So from now on I'm gonna try to reply to most reviews in this authors notes section so starting next chapter, if you want to know something or simply want to post a normal review I will post a reply up with the chapter after. :D I'm looking forward to hearing from you all again.

Love

TheAnimeKat

* * *

><p><strong>Part 5 – Second attack<strong>

Sitting at the small table in Urahara's shop felt so normal Soi could almost forget why she was there in the first place. Yoruichi, Urahara and her had spent the rest of the day talking and playing silly games whenever Yoruichi felt bored. Soi would not have normally taken part in such childish affairs, but the look on Yoruichi's face when Urahara had brought out game of monopoly was far too cute to say no too. So they were currently squished around the miniscule table with a game of monopoly set up. They had only been playing for a few minutes but Yoruichi had already had to stop more than once to teach Soi the rules; it was a human game after all. Plus, it was British, which meant Soi hadn't even heard of the game before.

"Wait!" Soi started once again, frowning and pointing to the particular place on the board where she had just landed. "What in the king's name is that thing in my square?"

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow, looking rather oddly at Soi. "Umm, that's a train Soi. You landed on Kings Cross station."

Soi's frown deepened. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but that looks nothing like a train Yoruichi-sama." Soi thought back to the few times she had seen the Japanese trains, and from what she could remember they looked nothing like the green lumpy thing that was scruffily illustrated on the board in front of her.

A few seconds of silence ensued while Urahara and Yoruichi tried to determine the reason for Soi's confusion, before a thought struck Yoruichi.

"Soi… how long was it after I left that you first went to the human world?" She questioned.

"A few years, why?"

Kisuke turned to Yoruichi, stunned. "You mean she never went to the human world with you?"

Yoruichi grinned, "nope, not once."

"Not even when there was that huge hollow attack in-".

"Kisuke, did you honestly think I would have let her come with me for that." Kisuke saw Yoruichi's frown and smiled.

"I guess not."

"Exactly. So no, she never left the soul society."

Soi blushed slightly, feeling uncertain as to how this conversation had any connection to her current predicament.

"I wanted to go…"

"You were far too young to come with me for something like that."

"I was not! I always went with you on dangerous missions!"

"Only when I was going to be there to keep an eye on you." Yoruichi grinned at the grumpy look on Soi's face, recognising the same look from the time she had first turned down Soi's wish to go with her to the human world.

"Hmmph, well what does this have to do with monopoly?"

Kisuke looked to Soi, and then back to Yoruichi, who was sat with a foolish grin on her face. Suddenly the two burst out laughing, Urahara covering his face with his fan in an attempt to hide his goofy smile. Soi blanched, "WHAT?" Yoruichi scooted over from her seat to sit next to the younger soul reaper, composing herself enough to point to the picture on the board.

"Soi, this is a steam train." She giggled slightly, looking back to Soi. "They were one of the first trains to be invented; very popular in Europe. When I left they were almost all gone anyway, so I suppose by the time you ventured out here for the first time they had already been replaced with newer models. "

"So… what does it mean?" Feeling uncomfortable with the closeness of her former captain, Soi tried to wiggle away, forcing her thoughts to the game instead of remembering how it felt to be pressed against her like she had been that morning.

"It means…" Yoruichi leaned across Soi to where she kept her small pile of notes, pulling out £200 from the pile. Soi froze, the heat that had been threatening to rise for a while finally making its way to her face. Yoruichi leant back again, still far too close to Soi for her to feel comfortable. "That you have to pay £200 to the banker, and seeing as I'm the banker, I'll do the job myself." Soi wasn't sure if Yoruichi's smile was meant to be seductive, or whether it just seemed that way due to her heated state. She swallowed thickly, grey eyes glued to Yoruichi's gold ones.

The next few second happened so fast that later on Soi would not even remember the most obvious details. Yoruichi's face suddenly dropped, her body crumpling in on itself as she let out a strangled moan. "nnggghh… SHIT!" Yoruichi collapsed forward, her hand reaching out to grab Soi as she tried to steady herself.

"Yoruichi-sama?" Soi grabbed at Yoruichi's hand, pulling her to the side slightly before she hit the floor, so she would land on her instead. She pulled her close, grunting slightly at the burning skin she was holding onto. Kisuke rushed forward, helping Soi turn Yoruichi around to lay her gently onto the floor.

"Ururu! Get me some cold water and a flannel!"

"No, wait!"

"Soi, what –"

"It won't help, she needs to transform." Yoruichi gasped as the pain got worse. Every muscle was hurting. It felt like there was someone shoving knifes in her chest while pouring scolding water over the rest of her.

"SOI… GAAHH! Get him OUT!" She almost screamed the command at Soi, scratching at the young woman, desperately trying to get her to help. "I need… t-"

Soi leant over Yoruichi, tears threatening to spill. "Kisuke… get out."

"BUT…" Kisuke was about to protest when Soi turned her head to look him straight in the eyes. For the first time he could see a pleading look in her face like he had never seen in anyone else's before. It was clear to him then that Soi knew more about this than she was letting on. He silently stood, taking one last look at his best friend moaning on the floor, and left the room, sliding the door shut as he went.

Soi turned back to Yoruichi, grabbing her t-shirt and tearing it off, struggling to see through the tears welling in her eyes. Yoruichi's moans were quickly turning into screams, her hands clawing at Soi.

"I'm trying Yoruichi!" She yelled, ripping off more clothing until Yoruichi was left in only the bare essentials. "Okay! Yoruichi you need to change!" She heard Yoruichi sob, the sweat making her hair stick to her face as she rolled on the floor. When a few seconds passed and Yoruichi still hadn't changed Soi began to panic. "Yoruichi-sama, come on! You need to change into your cat form! Please…" Yoruichi simply sobbed again, nails digging into Soi's arm and back.

"I can't…" she whispered, pulling the young girl closer to her in an attempt to lessen the pain. She felt like she was going to be sick.

"Please…" Soi was crying now, the hot tears flowing freely at the thought of Yoruichi slipping away. "Yoruichi… please don't leave me again." She felt the body below her stiffen. "Please… don't…"

_Those words! _The scene from her nightmare flashed before her. _I won't- I can't hurt her again!_ Yoruichi tensed, pushing against the pain and forcing her body into transition. With an ear-splitting yell she turned, the pain fading as fast as it had come on.

The room was silent for a couple of minutes, with Soi waiting for Yoruichi to say she was ok, and Yoruichi trying to find the strength to say it. It took several deep breaths and a shaky cough before Yoruichi decided she needed to say something.

"I'm ok Soi" she finally spoke, pushing herself into a seated position, but refusing to look at the small shinigami. Soi fell back against the table, wiping her eyes. "Good" she let out shakily. With a sigh Yoruichi turned again, the poof of smoke going un-noticed by the two women. Yoruichi's movements were sluggish, each small motion sending a jolt of pain through her. The aching was forgotten however, when she finally pulled on her clothes and looked at Soi. Yoruichi's gasp brought Soi back to reality, and she sat up properly, frowning at the disgusted look on Yoruichi's face. "What's wrong?"

"I…I'm so sorry Soi." _Sorry?_ Soi thought, _Yoruichi never apologizes for anything._ Following her gaze Soi let her eyes travel down, freezing at what she saw. "Soi, I didn't know I was doing it, I really didn't." It took a few second for Soi to comprehend what she was seeing. Her captains' cloak was torn almost to shreds, pieces of material hanging from different places, the rips following through to the clothes underneath, leaving her bare skin visible. But it was her arms that Yoruichi was looking at the most. The skin on her arms was raw and bleeding, nail marks clear as day against her creamy white complexion.

Lifting one arm up Soi inspected the wounds; they weren't deep, but there were lots of them, some simply caused by Yoruichi digging her nails in too hard, and others were much longer and wider from where she had literally scratched away her skin.

Yoruichi shifted closer, slowly reaching out a hand and carefully lifting Soi's arm up. "Huh, I really did a good job there didn't i?" Yoruichi was distressed to say the least. Soi was one of the most important people in her life, and knowing that this mess was her fault caused her a great deal of pain, even if it wasn't physical like when she had collapsed. "Soi," Yoruichi released her arm, letting it drop to the floor, "I'm sorry."

Soi took a second to take in all the scratch marks before sighing heavily. "It's fine Yoruichi-sama, I've had much worse."

"Ha! At a time like this, you still call me Yoruichi-_sama_? Soi, it looks like I just mauled you."

Soi smiled at the strange comparison, ignoring the pain as she adjusted her position to something that was more comfortable. "Well, you are part cat." Soi and Yoruichi laughed, the light-hearted words pleasant after the horrible position they had just been in.

Soi lifted a hand to her face, running it up to her hair and trying to flatten the shaggy mess that had taken over her head. She glanced at Yoruichi, noticing the sombre look on her face, and the twitch in her eyes every time she moved. Soi felt wetness pooling in her eyes once more, and moved the hand in her hair down to her eyes, quickly wiping them before Yoruichi could notice.

But unfortunately Yoruichi was paying extra close attention to Soi, and could easily see that she was upset. Normally Yoruichi would make a joke in this kind of situation as some kind of attempt to lighten the mood – to make Soi feel better. She couldn't. There was nothing to say that would help. So Yoruichi sighed heavily, not bothering to fake a smile as she reached out to take Soi's arm, minding the cuts she had made.

"Come 'ere." Soi was shocked at the unusual move from the woman, and not knowing how to react she surrendered herself to her, allowing Yoruichi to twist her around and pull her into her lap. "I'm sorry for scaring you." Yoruichi whispered, carefully resting her head on Soi's shoulder so as not to hurt the girl. Soi felt her tears begin to flow. She had been fighting her confusion for so long and she simply couldn't do it anymore. Finally giving in to all her fear and anger at what was going on, she began to shake with sobs, small whimpers escaping her lips as she leant back into Yoruichi.

The darker woman's heart almost broke at the sound of Soi crying, but she forced herself to stay strong, shushing the girl, and rocking her side to side. "Shhh," she closed her eyes, "it'll be okay."

Soi shook her head. "No." She sniffed a few times, temporarily halting the tears. "I spoke to Unohana; I know what happened last time." Yoruichi frowned but nodded slowly.

"I see. That's why you've been acting differently then?" It was meant as a question, but seeing as Yoruichi already knew the answer Soi chose not to reply. "I got through it then, I can do it again."

"How," Soi span around, re-settling herself so she was facing Yoruichi, only inches apart, "how do you know that?" The warmth of Yoruichi's body was calming to the young girl (even if Yoruichi was still very sweaty), and her own body seemed to find it a fitting time to blush, essentially ruining the `heart-to-heart` they seemed to be having. Yoruichi smiled at her embarrassment.

"I know it because you're going to be here to help me." Soi was surprised enough Yoruichi had chosen to continue the conversation instead of picking on the obvious flush to her cheeks, but this was a whole new level of shock.

"What?" Soi raised her eyebrows. _Is this her way of letting me in? _

"Well, it's pretty obvious I'm useless at coping with this myself, and if Unohana told you what happened last time then you know about as much as I do about whatever it is that's going on. So… I trust you to look after me." Yoruichi looked at the ceiling, a bright smile lighting up her face. "And now we get to be closer to one another."

_Closer… _Soi thought back to the time she had first seen Yoruichi collapse. S_he did say I was never close enough. Maybe she just wanted to tell me what was wrong - to actually rely on someone other than herself for once…_

Soi sat still for a few seconds, silently debating whether or not to hug the woman she was now so close to. Deciding it was a _good_ idea not a bad one she slowly lifted her arms, sliding them around Yoruichi. This got her full attention.

"Soi…" She whispered, not sure what to do in return. She had never really done anything like this before. Sure, she had hugged Kisuke a few times and she always messed with Soi by touching her or occasionally wrapping an arm around her, but this was real. Uncertain of her movements, Yoruichi gently placed her hands on Soi's back, sliding them further around so she was holding the girl. Blushing was Soi's thing normally, but the emotional closeness of Soi made Yoruichi feel warm, and she soon found her cheeks red from the strange sensation.

"Ok I can't take it any longer I'm coming in!" They both relinquished their hold on each other at the voice.

Kisuke pushed the door open, poking his head inside and sighing in relief when he saw Yoruichi was okay. However it was only a matter of second before he noticed Soi wounds and let out a very inappropriate – "If you needed time to get kinky you could have just said so" – with a wink in Soi's direction.


	6. Bath

**Authors Note**

*sighs* finally finished the chapter.

Im really sorry it's been so long, but unfortunately I still go to school and I'm in the middle of my art exam week, and where it's my last year these few months are full of exams. So, I'm sorry but it can't really be helped.

Anyway! As promised I will start replying to all your reviews so here goes.

**Captain-Blue-Cat-94** – Thanks so much, and I agree the last sentence was good :P

**Mr Khan** – hahaha how did I know you would pick up on that. I know the info in that chapter was wrong, but I thought it sounded good in the chapter so I put it in anyways.

**Jag Freeze** – Well, I try to keep the personalities as real as possible considering the type of story it is. And I can tell you that something big will happen, but you'll have to wait and see.

**YoruichiXSoiFon1** - :D Glad to know you like it

**Hayden Shaolin David **– Thanks for the comment, I wanted to make the chapter a little more comedic so I'm glad it worked.

**Marley2510** – Thanks so much, and I will try and post up the story for competition, as due to my work load I can't promise it. But I'll try my best. Oh, and here's the update you wanted. ^^

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><p><strong>Part 6 – Bath<strong>

Yoruichi pushed herself up, wobbling slightly as she felt a rush of light-headedness sweep over her. She grunted softly, frowned, and then let out a heavy sigh. She glanced down at Soi, cautiously reaching out a hand to the younger girl. Yoruichi was rarely nervous, but after sharing so much with Soi she felt off guard, and was unsure as to Soi's true feelings on her little _situation_. Soi placed her hand in Yoruichi's, letting her be pulled to her feet.

"Thanks" she said, a small smile lighting up her features. Soi could see Yoruichi wasn't used to being close emotionally with people, so she knew she needed to reassure her that she would be with her all the way, but Kisuke had ruined the moment, shattering Soi's hopes of reassuring the woman to pieces. _This, _Soi glared at the man in question, _this is why I hate him… he ruins everything. It's like he bloody PLANS to do it too! He's just so god damn cocky all the time, and way he was acting this morning was flipin' ridiculous as well! I mean COME ON! His best friend had collapsed the day before and he was just acting like nothing happened! How can h-_

"SOI!" Yoruichi waved a hand in front of Soi's face.

"Huh?" Soi's eyes un-glazed as she tore them away from Kisuke (who was now looking rather frightened), and let them rest on Yoruichi.

"I know you don't like Kisuke but could you please be discrete when you're ranting about him in your mind?"

"How did you-" Yoruichi let out a short laugh.

"Soi, your glare could kill, and you mumble under your breath when you're in a bad mood."

Soi looked at Yoruichi – dumbstruck. _Am I really that obvious?_

"And yes, you are that obvious." Soi grumbled quietly, facing the floor. "Soi, come on, let's get you cleaned up. At this Soi recoiled slightly, knowing exactly what Yoruichi was planning; and not liking it one bit.

"By cleaned up you mean…"

Yoruichi grinned, "I'm going to give you a bath."

"oh no…"

* * *

><p>Kisuke fidgeted in his seat, scratching his head awkwardly as he watched Yoruichi running back and forth from the bathroom. "Um, hehe, Yoruichi… is this really a good idea? Soi's a lot more grown up now." He leant to the side as the dark skinned woman reached behind him to grab an un-opened bar of soap from the cupboard he was resting against.<p>

"_That_," Yoruichi emphasized the word, pointing a finger in Kisuke's face, "is exactly why this is a brilliant idea Kisuke!"

"What do you mean" Yoruichi grinned cheekily.

"I'm pretty certain Soi has _grown_ up rather a lot since we last bathed together."

"Oh ho ho, I see."

Yoruichi poked her tongue out playfully. "Seeing her in a swimming costume was lovely, but I'm looking forward to _this_ much more."

"Pervert" Kisuke stated, rolling his eyes, but Yoruichi just laughed, finding it quite ironic that one of the biggest perverts in the soul society was criticizing her.

The fun didn't last long however, and Yoruichi quickly sobered, briefly looking over at the bathroom that she locked Soi in. "I need to make the most of it while I still can."

"Yorui-"

"I'm sorry Kisuke." Urahara stopped short, almost as shocked as Soi had been when Yoruichi had apologised to her. "I'm sorry I never told you about any of this." Kisuke waved a hand, brushing of the comment.

"Don't worry about it."

"I hurt Soi because I was being selfish; I don't want to do that to you too." There was short silence as she thought about what to say. "The cuts I gave her today… they're nowhere near as bad as they could have been, and those small fits are only the start… Kisuke, I need you to promise you won't let me hurt her again." She took a few steps closer to Kisuke, gently placing the soap on the side so she could bend down in front of him. The two stared into each other's eyes; Yoruichi's looking for truth, whilst Kisuke's desperately searched for hope. "Kisuke, I don't care what you have to do – if I hurt her, do whatever you can to stop me, even if it means you have to hurt _me_. I need to know I can trust you on this." Kisuke tried to drop his eyes, but found it impossible under the intense gaze Yoruichi was giving him. Neither one breathed as Kisuke weighed up the options. Knowing that Yoruichi was trusting him with the welfare of probably the most important person in her life was a big thing for him, but the underlying meaning to what she was asking made him think twice about agreeing to her wishes. _She would expect me physically stop her if it came to it, even if it meant killing her… Could I really do that?_

Yoruichi didn't dare move, simply staring at Kisuke while he made his choice. Suddenly, with a heavy sigh, Kisuke placed his hand on Yoruichi's shoulder.

"I promise."

Yoruichi released her breath finally. _Good, _she though, _if I know I won't harm Soi then I'm happy that I can stay with her for now. She certainly wouldn't leave, and if Kisuke couldn't promise me he would protect her then I would have to go instead… and I don't think I have the will to do that again._

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Soi paced frantically round the bathroom. She had given up to her fate, knowing that it was impossible to stop Yoruichi from doing something she wanted this bad. The cuts on her shoulders were pretty much numb, but the deeper ones on her arms were itchy and painful. Soi was used to dealing with pain, but normally they would have been sorted out by now and she would have taken some sort of herbal medicine from Unohana to take away the majority of the pain, so she was finding it unusually hard to deal with the annoying slashes.<p>

"Arrgg! What in the king's name is wrong with me! They're just some stupid cuts!" she said, grabbing the closest thing in an attempt to stop the temptation to itch the wounds. They were still bleeding slightly so she didn't want to make them worse, but the itching was getting on her nerves. "What is taking her so long?"

It was several minutes before Yoruichi finally walked in, holding a bar of soap and a packet of something unknown to Soi. She shut the door, grinning madly at Soi. "So! Are we ready?"

Soi grumbled, clenching her fists in order to keep them at her sides.

"What's wrong?"

"These blinking cuts are itching like mad is what's wrong!"

"hahaha well duh, that's what this is for." Yoruichi held up the foreign object. "It's a sort of paste Urahara and I invented when we were younger. It helps to seal minor wounds and relieves any itching. I'm going to put it on your wounds before you get into the bath."

"huh," Soi said as Yoruichi put the soap on the side and pulled out a stool for Soi to sit on, "Handy."

"Yeah, well, I was always getting criticized for coming home with cuts, and Urahara was a terror for scratching at his, so we invented something that helped both of us." Yoruichi sat Soi down on the stool and knelt down in front of her. "Strip." Soi paled, mouth hanging open at the casual way she had asked her to get unchanged.

"B-but Yoruichi-s-sama!"

"No buts Soi! If I'm going to heal you I need to be able to get to the wounds." Soi turned her face to the side, grudgingly pulling at the rope around her waist until it fell to the floor. Yoruichi smiled, reaching up to place her hands at the base of Soi's neck. She whipped her head around at the movement, blushing furiously. "Y-yoruichi i-I can do-"

"Shush" Yoruichi slid her hands sideways in opposite directions, careful not to apply any real pressure as she felt the gashes under her palms. She breathed in deeply, a strange feeling circling in her stomach. She stared at her hands, concentrating solely on the task at hand. Pushing her hands a little further she slid them under the young girls kimono, dragging it across her shoulder and down her arms. Soi shivered as the air hit her bare skin.

Yoruichi could only stare confused at the small girl in front of her. She had never felt so nervous before. _It's just because I'm worried about her cuts is all_. Yoruichi told herself as she felt another flutter in her stomach, causing her to swallow thickly. She pushed the kimono backwards slightly, allowing it to drop to the floor and reveal Soi in only her under garments. Her breath hitched at what she saw. Soi's skin was just as pale as it had been when she was still a child, but now it was covered with small scars from all her battles. She raked her eyes over Soi's stomach, resisting the urge to touch it, and forced herself to look higher up to where the mass of cuts were.

Soi felt self-conscious; she had always been ashamed of her body, and letting Yoruichi see her like this was nerve racking. She watched as her idol reached into a bowl of warm water to her side and pulled out a damp cloth. Yoruichi hesitated before touching Soi, calming herself first. _What was that about?_ Soi though briefly, but stopped thinking completely when she felt the warm cloth touch her skin. It stung, and she hissed quietly, clenching her fists on the stool.

"S-sorry." Yoruichi said, her hand shaking a little. _What is wrong with me? Oh man this is wrong… I can't seriously be nervous just because I'm touching Soi can i?_

Yoruichi wiped the cloth over the majority of Soi's cuts, wiping off as much of the blood as possible without re-opening any of the wounds. The deeper ones were still bleeding but a lot of the smaller ones had stopped, and were already beginning to heal. "Ok, I'm going to put the paste on now. You ok?"

"Um, yeah, sure." Soi's face was back to its normal colour (or as normal as it got around her former captain), and she felt rather calm considering the situation.

"MmmHmmm…" Yoruichi frowned as she stood and picked up the tub of paste. _Of all the times to start feeling awkward, it just had to be now didn't it? _She sighed and shakily knelt back down, refusing to look at Soi. It didn't take a lot of paste to seal the cuts of this size, but Yoruichi purposely took her time getting a large amount of the stuff in her left hand, swirling it around a little before finally, dipping her right index finger into the greyish paste and lifting her hand up to Soi's bare shoulder. Soi had pushed the straps of her bra down so she could get better access to her shoulders, and although Yoruichi was happy she was letting her heal her properly, she couldn't seem to deal with that amount of Soi being on show at the moment. Her finger gently touched a small cut on Soi's collarbone, running down slowly and stopping when it had finished its path.

Yoruichi noticed Soi's fist were white from clenching the stool. "It shouldn't hurt for much longer."

"No, it's okay. It just stings a little is all. Don't worry about hurting me."

"Okay…" Yoruichi whispered, choosing a cut at random and wiping more of the paste across it. _Her skin's so soft. Shit… I can't do this!_ Yoruichi's breathing was getting erratic, and her hands were obviously shaking. She forced herself to continue, pretending it was anyone other than Soi she was doing this too.

After about fifteen minutes the job was pretty much done. Yoruichi sighed in relief. "Right!" She looked over Soi, making sure to check her sides and back as well. It was just as she was going to stand up that she noticed a single cut behind Soi's ear that was still un-sealed. "oh!" She said, reaching up with the paste to touch the side of Soi's neck, just behind Soi's ear. It was hard for her to see it so she leant forward and to the side slightly, regretting it instantly. The small movement had meant her thigh was in contact with Soi's, and their faces were much closer.

Soi blushed, but smiled to reassure Yoruichi that she was okay with it. Soi's scent was overwhelming for Yoruichi, making her stomach turn in a half pleasant half sickening way. She loved the feel of Soi, but the way it was making her react was worrying for her and she began to feel sick.

"Soi, I can't…" She pushed herself away from the girl, not bothering to close the lid of the tube before rushing out of the bathroom as fast as she could.

Soi sat there dumbfounded. The place on her neck where Yoruichi had just sealed was hot from her touch, but she couldn't make sense of what had happened. _She seemed physically okay, so It's not her illness. Maybe she still feels guilty about hurting me._ Confused and tred, Soi decided not to bother trying to figure it out – Yoruichi would probably tell her later. Sighing she cleaned up the bathroom and stepped into the bath Yoruichi had run her, impressed when the paste stayed put even under hot water. _Sometimes I really don't get that woman. She seemed kind of nervous. Bah! Yoruichi doesn't GET nervous. Hmmmm… I wonder… No_ Soi sat up straight in the bath tub, water splashing around her. _She wasn't reacting to ME was she? Like when I get flustered around her? Oh man how I wish that was the case._ Soi chewed on her lip.

"Well, at least my wounds don't itch anymore."

* * *

><p>Yoruichi ran out of the house using flash step. She kept running until she was far enough away that she couldn't see Urahara's shop, finding a small hill on the edge of Karakura town. Though the grass was wet and cold, Yoruichi lay down anyway, letting the dampness soak into her clothes. She was still breathing heavily, and her hands were covered in the paste she had used to heal Soi. Frowning she wiped her hands on the grass, getting off the worst of the muck, and brought one of her hands to her face. She covered it, hoping to block out her conflicting emotions.<p>

"What the hell…?" She gritted her teeth and pulled a handful of grass from the earth, smashing it back down as hot liquid started pooling in her eyes. "What am I doing?"

Using the hand that was on her face Yoruichi wiped her eyes angrily. "Gah!" _I think I need to seriously think about this. _

Yoruichi removed her had from her face, holding it up to the sky and staring at her dark skin. _I know I have strong feelings for Soi; probably stronger that I have for anyone else. She's always been there for me, even after I ran away to save Kisuke, and I don't think I've ever really felt hatred of any kind towards her. I was angry when she overheard me talking about my illness, but I didn't hate her for it – I was just worried. _

_I feel kinda depressed when I don't see her for a long time, and I certainly wish she was closer to me. Huh, I wonder if she overheard that part of my little monologue back then too. Probably, knowing my luck at the moment. Oh well…_

_I've never felt so… warm before, let alone nervous. I felt like a child. _"Urggg, it's stupid!" Yoruichi sat up, ready to push up and leave, but felt a pang in her chest at the thought of going back to Soi. She sighed. _Oh great, so now just thinking about her makes me excited. _

Yoruichi froze, _Excited? So… she excites me? How?_ A sudden rush of horror struck her as an idea came to fruition. She looked around her quickly before slowly reaching down into her jeans to where her legs met. _Oh god! Well, I guess that explains a lot. _She quickly removed her hand, curling up into a ball as she tried to comprehend what she was feeling.

_So… it's pretty obvious I got turned on by Soi earlier. But that's impossible! I've known her for years! I just feel motherly love towards her right?_

_Then why were you turned on by seeing her almost naked?_

_Well, I'm ill, it got to be something to do with that!_

_And the feeling you're having now?_

_Panic?_

_No, the other one._

…_I don't know…_

_Could it be that you like her in a more than friendly way?_

_NO! _

_Why not?_

_Because she's… she's… she's like, what, 70 years younger than me!_

_Yeah, that's only about 7 years if you compare it to the human life line, and that's not actually that much you know._

_Says who? My conscience?_

_No, just the logical you. _

_Fine! But she's like a child to me!_

_Are you sure you weren't just mistaking the signs?_

_I…Do I really like her in that way?_

Yoruichi stared at the sky, her face blank. "What is going on?"


	7. First Kiss

**Authors Note**

YAY! Good chapter coming up guys! I tried to put in a bit more effort into this one, so I hope its ok, and you all like it.

And now to say a little something to my lovely reviewers.

**Hayden Shaolin David** – Thanks, I hope you like this one even more

**Captain-Blue-Cat-94** – Its sweet isn't it, and thanks for understanding about my exams, it's nice to know it's not just me going through it all.

**Kris-tim-chan** – awwww, thank you so much, but I'm really not that great ^^

**YoruichiXSoiFon1** – hehehe, poor Yoruichi indeed, but she gets a little bit of love in this chapter so not to worry.

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><p><strong>Part 7 – First Kiss<strong>

The next few days were horrible for both Soi and Yoruichi. Yoruichi had had two more of her little `fits` as Urahara had taken to calling them, and her nightmares were becoming a frequency. Her screaming had woken Soi every night since she had come to the human world, and she was getting cranky. Urahara was of course being even more annoying than usual, and his thoughtless comments were grating especially hard on her nerves due to her lack of sleep.

Yoruichi was also finding it hard to keep her emotions in control; though for a different reason. Since she had come to the decision that she probably had feelings for Soi, she had decided that the only way to really be sure was to make an effort to be closer to the young girl, but the way Soi had gone from being shy and embarrassed to protective and cranky was making it difficult for her.

She was, however, finding it very easy to hide her feelings from Soi. Though she had been worried when she saw Soi for the first time after their incident in the bathroom, she seemed to be almost completely oblivious to her feelings, and seemed to blame Yoruichi's illness for her unusual behaviour.

"You know you could just use the normal mod soul's right?" Yoruichi said with a smile as she watched Kisuke play with some new sort of mod soul that he was trying to invent – and failing miserably.

"But where's the fun in that though?" Kisuke grinned, but jumped back when a vial to his right exploded with a puff of smoke.

"Yeah…"

They were sat as normal in Kisuke's shop, around his miniature table, but he had opened up one of the screen doors so he could talk to them while doing his testing. It was around 8'o'clock, so the sun was beginning to set, which according to Kisuke was the best time to do experiments as the lighting was perfect. It made no sense to Yoruichi or Soi, but the two stayed quiet nonetheless.

Soi groaned as another vial exploded, this time making an ear-splitting wail, and banged her fist down on the table. "For heaven's sake Urahara! Can you PLEASE be quiet?"

"Eehhhh," Kisuke rubbed the back of his head apologetically, before wiping up the mess he had made. "Sorry"

"grrrrrr" soi grumbled, the vain in her head pulsing in anger.

"Soi, why don't you just go take a nap?" Yoruichi asked, reaching to the right to pat her on the back. Soi slumped to the floor, banging her head on the table, and not bothering to lift it back up.

"mmmmhhhh caushh I domm wann oohh…"

Yoruichi sighed, "You're just being stubborn."

"humph"

Another bang was heard from the room Kisuke was in, making the two women jump, and resulting mainly in Soi smashing her head back down on the table. Laughing, Yoruichi pushed herself to her feet, lazily bending down and grabbing Soi's arm.

"Come on!" She used her other arm to reach around Soi's tiny waist, lifting the small girl off of the floor and into her arms, bridal carry style. Yoruichi was expecting Soi to squeal at the movement, or blush at the very least, but the reaction she got was quite the surprise.

Soi groaned lightly, squirming in Yoruichi's grip as she adjusted herself. However, instead of pushing away like she normally would, Soi pulled herself closer, nuzzling her face into Yoruichi's shoulder like a child would.

"Soi, are you… asleep?" Yoruichi shifted one of her arms, causing Soi's head to roll slightly to one side. Her eyes were sealed tightly shut, but she looked so relaxed Yoruichi couldn't help but smile. She chuckled, "well, that was fast."

Kisuke watched the scene with a more than vague interest, raising an eyebrow at the gentle way Yoruichi cradled Soi in her arms. "She's tired."

"Way to state the obvious Kisuke." She started towards the bedroom she normally slept in before Kisuke stopped her.

"You're taking her to _your_ room?"

"Well, I'm not going to let her sleep on the floor again am I? Not when she's this tired. And I don't need my futon at the moment so I don't mind her using it for a bit."

"Okay"

Yoruichi walked the short distance to her bedroom and, kicking the sheets back first, placed Soi gently down on her futon. Unsure of what to do next she knelt down next to her, pulling the covers over her and brushing a few stray strands of hair from her face.

_She's so peaceful when she's sleeping._ Yoruichi sat there for a few minutes, making as little noise as possible. The room was dark, the only light coming in from the closed window; the last of the evening sun casting a dark yellow glow to the room. She was just about to leave when she heard Soi mumble in her sleep.

"mmmmnngg… Yoru…chi….sma…" She rolled onto her side, frowning as she searched for her former captain.

"hahaha! Even in your sleep it's still Yoruichi-_sama_" She laughed at the hopeless attempt Soi was making to grab her and finally gave the girl some peace, taking Soi's hand in her own. She watched in awe as a blissful smile crept over Soi's face. She stirred a little, her eyes fluttering open ever so slightly.

"mmmm… stay with me?" Yoruichi froze, thinking about the possible consequences of her staying with a helpless Soi when she knew she felt how she did.

"Please?" Soi opened her eyes further, tightening her grip on Yoruichi's wrist. Yoruichi swallowed nervously, but gave in, scooting closer to Soi and lying down next to her.

"Fine, but only for a little while, ok?"

"mmmm, thanks." Soi face flushed when Yoruichi's arm brushed against her and she smiled at the feeling. The past few days had been so hard for her that she had forced her feelings for Yoruichi deep down, refusing to let them get in the way of her looking after Yoruichi. However much she hated her embarrassing habit of blushing whenever Yoruichi was anywhere near her, the familiar feeling soothed her. She curled up under the covers, pulling them back so she could throw them over Yoruichi, retreating quickly when her hand accidently came into contact with Yoruichi's chest.

Soi laughed at her own reaction, relishing in the heat of Yoruichi's body, and the tingling feeling it made her feel. Yoruichi turned sat up slightly, frowning. "What's so funny?" She asked, ignoring the butterflies in her stomach she got from Soi's touch.

"Nothing…" Soi shut her eyes, "I just missed this is all."

"Missed what?"

Soi snuggled closer to Yoruichi, wrapping an arm around her waist protectively. "I missed loving you…"

Yoruichi's thoughts stopped. _Loving you_… the words ran through her head repeatedly, and her heart skipped a beat when she realised exactly what they meant. _She loves me? _Soi opened her eyes. She didn't speak at first, letting the words sink in. She looked up at Yoruichi, who was staring blankly at the wall, unmoving. "Yoruichi, I really like you. I think…" She smiled as she finally spoke the words she had been avoiding for over a decade, "I think I really do love you Yoruichi."

Any fear Soi had ever had of confessing to Yoruichi had gone out of the window the moment she realised how serious her condition was. Yoruichi wasn't simply ill – she couldn't get ill – she was possibly dying. When Unohana had told her about what was happening to Yoruichi she had pushed it out of her head, banishing the thought to a separate place where it couldn't hurt her, but with all the sleepless nights and tortured daytimes it was almost impossible not to think about it. So she forced herself to accept the possibility. It would kill her if Yoruichi died, but it would be even worse to let her die without letting her know how she really felt.

Soi tried to understand the emotions running through Yoruichi's eyes. She wasn't scared of rejection; she just wanted Yoruichi to know how she felt. But as she stared into Yoruichi's eyes she held her breath anyway, processing each and every passing emotion.

First was confusion.

_She… loves me? _

Then disbelief.

_I must have heard her wrong or something…_

Then came reasoning.

_Well, I knew she had some kind of feelings for me, and she does always blush when I do flirty things to her._

Then… hope? Soi was shocked at this, wondering exactly what kind of hope it was.

_If she likes me in that way then… maybe…_

Next came fear.

_What if she's just confusing her feeling for me with admiration or something. Or worse, what if she's not and I'm confusing mine. What if I hurt her without realising? Oh god… I… I think I want to-_

Soi waited patiently as all this went through Yoruichi's head, understanding that she needed time to take it all in, but she was surprised when she caught a glimpse of something far more curious in her former captain's gaze.

Was that… lust?

_-to kiss her…_

Yoruichi slowly moved her arm, carefully grabbing Soi's wrist as she turned to look her in the eyes. The full force of Yoruichi's gaze forced Soi to gasp, the much needed air burning her throat as she was twisted around in one fluid motion, until she was lying on her back, her wrist pinned to the floor by one of Yoruichi's hands. The older woman stared Soi straight in the eyes, moving the cover out if the way with her free hand, and positioning herself so she was straddling Soi.

Soi's heart was racing, her breath coming at double its normal pace as Yoruichi licked her lips slowly, her eyes raking over Soi's body. Yoruichi swallowed thickly. Taking a steady breath she shifted her legs backwards, and using her free hand to help her keep balance, she began to lean in closer. Her purple hair looked flawless in the yellowy light, odd bits shimmering as it fell over her face. Their lips were mere inches apart now, and Yoruichi could feel Soi's erratic breath on her face. Her smell was intoxicating, which wasn't helping her to control her emotions. She flicked her eyes down to Soi's lips and back to her eyes again, silently asking for permission.

Soi was stunned at the silent question - it was so unlike her – but knew she needed to give some kind of conformation so, holding her breath she reached up with one hand and cautiously placed it on the side of Yoruichi's face, caressing the skin as she stared intently into her lovers eyes. She moved it behind Yoruichi's head, putting a slight pressure there, guiding her forward. She shut her eyes and waited.

Yoruichi followed Soi's lead, fluttering her eyes shut, and with a deep breath she closed the gap between them. Her lips barely touched Soi's, but the feeling was incredible. Yoruichi pulled back after only a few seconds, the butterflies in her stomach making her giddy.

With a quick glance at Soi's face to make sure it was still ok, Yoruichi crashed her lips back down onto Soi's. She put more force into the kiss, moving her lips in time with Soi's to increase their pleasure. Soi hand gripped the back of her head, tangling into her hair. Keeping one hand on Soi's wrist, Yoruichi pushed the other up, running her nails lightly up Soi's side. The feeling made Soi gasp, and the older woman took the chance to slide her tongue into Soi's mouth.

Soi moaned, leaning up further into the kiss. She was pulling roughly at Yoruichi's hair, but the pain only made the pleasure more exciting for Yoruichi. She felt Yoruichi pull her tongue out after a few seconds, and she bit down on her lip, taking it into her mouth and sucking on it. Yoruichi let out a feral moan, ripping her lip out of Soi's mouth and growling as she slammed Soi hard onto the futon.

"Ahh!" Soi squeaked. Yoruichi's eyes glowed a brilliant gold, but that wasn't what caught Soi's attention. Her canine fangs were protruding ever so slightly, like they only would when she was in her cat form. "Y-yoru-ahh!" Yoruichi ran her mouth up Soi's neck, kissing and licking it as she made her way up to her ear. "Oh god!" Her face was bright red, and she screwed her eyes shut in pleasure.

Yoruichi wrapped her lips around Soi's ear, sucking on it hard, biting down lightly every now and then. "Yorui…chi…sama…" Yoruichi groaned. Hearing her name being moaned like that was making her go insane, but she knew she needed to control herself. Growling she pushed herself off of Soi, putting a good distance between them. She was weak from the lack of oxygen, but the sight of Soi panting; looking so hot on _her_ futon was making the animal inside of her go crazy.

Soi swallowed, surprised at the suddenness of Yoruichi's retreat. "What," she said, pushing herself up onto her elbows and staring at Yoruichi, "was that?"

Yoruichi groaned, _god she sounds so sexy right now, _covering her eyes with a blush. "Soi, could you do us both a favour and compose yourself?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just do it!" Soi noticed the commanding tone and did as she was told, straightening out her casual clothes, and pulling the cover over her.

"Better?"

"Yes," Yoruichi said, sighing and scooting closer when she felt her fangs recede, "thanks."

"So, um, what _was_ that?"

"_That_ was the thing that is making me ill."

"WHAT!"

"It's also what enables me to turn into a cat."

"I don't understand!"

"Soi," Yoruichi looked seriously at Soi, "how did you think I was able to turn into a cat?"

"I don't know. I assumed it was something to do with a potion or a pill or some kind of family thing…"

"Well, it's not."

"Then what is it?"

Yoruichi sighed. "Unohana didn't tell you everything Soi. When I first went to her with my problem she ran a few tests on me using some of Kurotsuchi's equipment. We worked out that whenever I have one of my fits, or have a nightmare there is some sort of connection to the human world. So we thought it might have something to do with my past. My _human_ life."

"Your… you mean before you were sent to the soul society?"

"Yes Soi. We managed… to hack into the connection if you will. It sent us to a scene of me when I was a teenager. I was camping with my father. But there was a panther there too, attacking us. My father was trying to protect me from it but it was too strong. It killed us both, but I managed to stab it with my father's knife as it came at me."

"You saw your own death?"

"Yeah, it wasn't pretty… but anyway, sometime later a shinigami came along and found my soul. My dad had passed on but I was stuck. When he sent me over my soul got caught up with the soul of the panther, and merged us together. Animals can't live in the soul society, so the panther's soul just disappeared, but I was left with parts of it. Hence, I can transform into a cat."

"O…kay… I get it, but how does that make you ill?"

"It seems that when the panther's soul left it left a fragment of itself in me. This small fragment has some weird power to burn off my illnesses, bu-

"But, after a while it can't take it and you get ill?"

"Exactly! You see, when it burns off the illness it also absorbs the energy from it, which overflows after a while and causes a huge problem. As you can see."

"And, uh," Soi blushed at the thought, "why did you get fangs when you kissed me?"

Yoruichi groaned a little; she had been hoping Soi hadn't noticed. "Well, the fragment of the panther absorbs the energy from the thing that causes me the most discomfort – which is being ill. But it also absorbs the energy from the thing that causes me the most pleasure – which is basically my sexual energy. "

Soi grinned, "if it absorbs sexual energy that means you have to be turned on right?"

"Yes."

"So, you were turned on by our kiss?" Soi's grin spread from ear to ear at Yoruichi's obvious discomfort.

Yoruichi groaned.


End file.
